Western cyclone. [volume] (Nicodemus, Kan.) 1886-1887, 1887-02-10
The Comparative Naval Strength OF
the European Powers.

The minor naval powers are falling
more or less completely out of the lists
of naval composition. Spain and Por-
tugal have ceased To be. and Greece
has not become OF any naval import
ance, Spain alone making some small
effort to keep respectable. but even
that effort is chiefly expanding Itself
as that of the United States govern
ment is about to eXpend itself, blythe
bye-in the production of very fast
vessels, which may be useful in prey
inc upon commerce, but which are
scarcely fit to fight even pirates, and
which a real war ship would dispose OF
with single round Of her battery tire.
They will be efficient in running away,
no doubt, when danger arises: but
running away" was not the method
by which the United States won naval
distinction, nor that by which Spain
once became great, and Greece inn
mortal. The naval policy of Germany
is defensive; she is almost without pre-
tensions upon the open sea. Turkey
is slowly but surely succumbing 10 Rus
sia and in the near future the Russian
Black Sea fleet will hold unquestioned
mastery over Turkey. Italy has 4
naval role of her own to play in EU-
rope, and on the whole is playing it
well. Austria would do we'll to hest
tate in her present naval condition be-
fore again exposing herself to the swift
and destructive onslaughts which the
tremendously armed and excessively
fast Italians ships could make upon
her France is a really great naval
which would make q naval conflict be
tween her and England one of the
most uncertain in the history of the
world. The French have very largely
abandoned the protection of their guns
by armor; we, most unhappily, have
still more largely abandoned the pro
lection Of our ships, and it remains to
be seen which has been the most fool
ish. In such a conflict the French
would have this advantage over En-
gland-the overthrow of their guns, or
the destruction of their gunners at
them, would not prevent their ships
themselves from withdrawing from ac-
ton and repairing their injuries. What
wo.lld become OF our ''Aiaxes," Aga
memnons,' our "ColiingW0ods' and
"BenboWs' Cloth these latter with
guns as much exposed as the French,
by-the-bye), when their long fragile
ends had been smashed and Water-lOg-
ged, and their high speed consequent
ly gone. is a question which ! prefer
not to speak of further There was,
there is, there ever will be, but one
sound policy for nation that desires
to command the seas, and can afford
TO do so, and that is to reject all doubt
full fads, alt dangerous fancicS, and to
insure without c2asing pronounced
superiority IN ccery kn0lcR and nloGsU'-
able element Of narM p0cer. New in
ventiOnS will and must be made: new
sources Of power, new means of attack,
will and must be discovered: but these
things take time and money and skill
to develop, and that power is the great
est and safest which from time TO time
and always prefers the thing which
must succeed To that which NAV, and
which others fear will, fail in the hour
OF trial. One hope ], the present writer,
have, and it is that the terrible deyel-
opment Of the weapons of WARRIOR
terrible it is with all its shortcomings
and the enormously increasing cost
alike of single actions and OF conflicts
between squadrons and fleets, will tend
to further, and to greatly further, those
influences which are happily operating
in favor OF peace and goodwill among
men.-,Sir Ed'Ga3W T. Rect, ia HaYpcr's